Let’s face it, our carpets get dirty!

If your home is like mine with kids tracking in the great outdoors and pets doing things we’d really rather they NOT do indoors, our carpets take a beating — on a regular basis! Hence, they need periodic cleanings.

Dirt and debris find their way deep down in the fibers and regular vacuuming just doesn’t remove it all. This is when you truly need a specific tool to do the job: a carpet cleaner.

Of course you can rent a carpet cleaner at the local grocery store or hardware, but what a hassle! I know I got tired of lugging a big ol machine home so I decided to do some research on do-it-at-home models. I love doing research (it’s the ‘geek’ in me) so it was easy to get motivated to search out a good, reliable home carpet cleaner at the best price.

One of the first places I always look for good reviews is on Amazon.com. I personally find it helpful to hear and learn from actual users of a product as they have nothing to gain in providing their honest opinion regarding their purchase. Hey, if that want to be brutally hones about what they’ve bought, it works for me!

So when I surfed over to Amazon and took a look at available carpet cleaners, I noticed out of all the carpet cleaner models listed (and they have a bunch!), the bestseller is the Hoover SteamVac Carpet Cleaner with Clean Surge, F5914-900.

I realize that something titled ‘a bestseller’ doesn’t’ automatically mean it’s the absolute best product, but I think it’s a good place to start. So follow along with me as I dig into the features of this Hoover Steam Vac to see if this is truly a good buy.

Hoover SteamVac Carpet Cleaner with Clean Surge, F5914-900

Well, for starters, “Hoover” is certainly a name that’s well-known and been around for a long time.  In fact, the Hoover story began way back in 1907.

(Okay, you DIDN’T visit this page for a history lesson!  Sorry, I said I was a research geek.  Let’s get back to this carpet cleaner…)

This Hoover SteamVac is built with a 12 amp motor. Okay, fine. What the heck does that mean? Does having more amps mean more power?

I did a little search and About.com provided an answer.

In short, more amps DO mean more power. But not necessarily more cleaning power. Most carpet cleaners will come with 12 amps.

Amps measure the power of the electrical current going from the outlet to the motor. It’s what the manufacturer DOES with those amps that makes a world of difference!

They tell me it all depends on how the motor is built. But for starters, with 12 amps, we’re at least getting ‘the juice’ we need for effective carpet cleaning.

The Clean Surge Function

The claim to fame on this Hoover SteamVac is the Clean Surge feature. When you have a difficult stubborn spot or stain on your carpet, the Clean Surge gives and extra burst of cleaning solution to the troubled area. This “Surge” squirts the hot detergent mix more vigorously than the trigger does and let’s you focus an the extra-grungy area.

The Clean Surge feature dispenses 50 percent more cleaning solution when activated with the fingertip control, then uses the unit’s five SpinScrub brushes to deep clean tough stains.

One thing I hate (okay, that’s a strong word.)  One thing I REALLY don’t like is having wet carpets when I’ve cleaned them in the past.  So I was curious if this model does a good job at removing the water it uses to clean with.  Turns out, it does!  (Did I mention that I really don’t like wet carpets?)

I was happy to read that the the suction of the Hoover carpet shampooer is very good at sucking up the dirty water – and the cleaning solution – out of the carpets. Removing that excess water results in a quicker drying time.  It also prevents water seepage into the wood floors beneath the carpet.

This model has built-in heated drying. Very nice. This helps speed up the drying time of a freshly cleaned carpet so you can actually walk on it!

Check this out. This little SteamVac wonder also works on linoleum! Okay, it’s not the method you’ll routinely use to clean bare floors, but it’s great for a periodic steam cleaning. And I know my floors need a good thorough cleaning every once in awhile.

The cord is 24-feet long and should be enough length to get around the room you’re working in.

SpinScrub Brushes

The Hoover F5914 comes equipped with five spinning/scrubbing brushes. This is the work horse of the model. I’ve cleaned carpet stains by hand and I know you need to work in the cleaner with a brush (although I have used my hands!) to get the cleaner deep in the fiber for it to work properly.

Hoover’s turbo brushes get deep down into the carpet fibers to clean the rug. The unit has 3 speeds for brush control:

• High for normal cleaning
• Low for a more gentler cleaning
• Off for just picking up spills

The brushes on this Hoover have some variety and they not only clean carpets, but can also tackle upholstery and bare floors. The work in a multi-directional mode to really do the deep-work within the carpet fibers. There’s a brush rotation indicator too and the brushes also pop out for easy cleaning/rinsing.

The Clean Surge is built with two water tanks that separate the clean water from the dirty. I saw some videos of this in action and it’s pretty cool (but gross!) watching the SteamVac suck up the goo on the carpets and deposit the nasties into the dirty tank.

The machine noticeably changes pitch when the dirty water reservoir fills up, so you’ll know when the tank is full.

Power Handheld Scrubber

Users claim that the power handheld scrubber works with its 2 separate rotating brushes works very well on stairs although doing the landing with the handheld is a project and best to use the SteamVac.

Oh, I guess I should mention that there IS a separate detachable handheld power scrubber. Pretty convenient for cleaning sofas, chairs, and other household fabric items.  Put that on the end of the 8-ft flexible hose and I can see that this would be a great accessory for deep cleaning on stairs, upholstery, or hard-to-reach areas.

One comment that was interesting was from a prior Bissell and Eureka owner. The user stated that the 5 rotating scrubbing brushes are much more effective at eliminating dirt than the single rotating drum brush design found on Bissell and Eureka machines. (I guess I can cross those models off my list!)

The handheld is also good for cleaning the upholstery in your car. I don’t know about you, but our car sees a lot of abuse! It’s good to know that the Hoover cleaner can help your car stay clean and fresh too.

The Hoover SteamVac is not all Perfect

I’d be lying if I said this is the ‘end-all, be-all’ in home carpet cleaning machines.  There are a few distractors and I’d like to share them with you:

Cons: Some users reported that the unit leaks. This is NOT good and caused me some alarm. But on further research I found that there’s something that needs to be done during the initial install to ensure that leaks don’t happen in the first place. Seems there is a one-time setup procedure to lock a part into place.   Many users have stated that if the unit is assembled properly, it won’t and doesn’t leak.  Installation is covered in the SteamVac manual. (Imagine that. Read the manual! What a novel suggestion.)

I also read from a few users that they wished there was a device that heats-up the cleaning water. There’s no heater in the “SteamVac”, so it’s suggested you make the gallon of water VERY hot for optimum cleaning. Some found the best way is to add some boiling water to the clean water tank and then they were very happy with the results.

NOTE:  You do have to thoroughly vacuum the carpet PRIOR to using the Hoover SteamVac. You want to remove as much loose dirt and grime you can prior to adding moisture to your carpet. We’re not interested in making mud pies here! So give the room a good vacuuming first.

I did read several comments that wished the water tanks were bigger. Although you most likely have to use a professional cleaner to get a larger tank, the one-gallon tanks are about standard for the consumer model size. It’s just a bit of a hassle but most Hoover users reported that it wasn’t that big of a deal. (But they were grossed out at the gunk in the dirty water tank that the unit pulled out of their carpets!)

Hoover SteamVac with Clean Surge Reviews

I don’t expect you to take my word that there are hundreds and hundreds of very positive reviews for this carpet cleaner (actually, close to 1,500 reviews!).   So if you’d like to read a ton of reviews  for the SteamVac, just click here.

Oh yeah, the Hoover SteamVac comes with a one-year warranty. So there’s some piece of mind long after the purchase.

Overall Assessment

My research found that many current users of the Hoover SteamVac felt that their carpet cleaning results were as good what they’d received from professional cleaners! Plus the professional outfits charge about as much to clean a room as what the unit is currently priced.

If you don’t mind cleaning carpets yourself, you can get nice clean carpets at a very reasonable price.  Think about it.   If you get one good cleaning out of this machine, you’re already ahead!

Hoover SteamVac with Clean Surge Price

If you visit Hoover’s website, the product is listed at $179.99. But here’s some good news: the Hoover SteamVac is on sale over at Amazon. CLICK HERE and check it out!